[As always, CLICK ON any photo to view it larger & in more detail]
With the holidays behind us (booooo), I tend to get a little down 😦 so I came up with a fun, new Winter tradition to pick up mine and my family’s spirits … The Snowflake Breakfast!
STEP ONE – look for a metal, snowflake-shaped cookie cutter. I just found a 4-pack at Wal-Mart for $2.88 that’s probably on sale now (woo-hoo!). The reason you need a metal cutter is so it can withstand the heat of your frying pan or griddle.
STEP TWO – dust off your favorite recipe to whip up a batch of pancake batter. Mine is chocolate chip! 🙂
STEP THREE – spray your frying pan or griddle AND the “inside” of a large snowflake cookie cutter with non-stick cooking spray.
STEP FOUR – Spoon some pancake batter into the snowflake cutter, spreading it evenly into each arm of the snowflake.
STEP FIVE – Brown the pancake on 1 side and use a spatula and the side of your pan to help you flip the pancake AND snowflake cutter (together) to begin browning the opposite side of the pancake.
STEP SIX – While the opposite side of the pancake is browning, use a knife to begin loosening it from the side of the snowflake cutter.
STEP SEVEN – Gently remove the snowflake cutter, and when done, remove the pancake from the pan.
STEP EIGHT – Make an inexpensive snowflake tree to use as a centerpiece on your Snowflake Breakfast table! Gather branches from outside and spray paint them white. HINT: Leave any berries or buds on the branches for added texture and detail. Cut a piece of styrofoam to fit in the bottom of a vase you have on hand. Arrange the painted & now dry branches in your vase to create a winter tree, using the styrofoam to hold them in place. Disguise the styrofoam with inexpensive Epsom Salts to simulate fresh fallen snow.
STEP NINE – Hang snowflakes in any windows and on the branches of your new winter tree and place in the center of your breakfast table.
STEP TEN – Years ago, I was lucky enough to find snowflake plates at J.C. Penny (on clearance.. whoo-hoo!) and snowflake glasses at Target, but you can use paper plates with a snowflake theme to duplicate this look on a budget. I found the over-sized white snowflakes at a dollar store…. they make great place mats! Finally, I recycled my snowflake pillows, lantern and snowflake candle (used in the family room at Christmas) to create more wintry ambiance on the side table underneath my window of snowflakes.
Check out the entire Snowflake Breakfast setting… it’s festive and happy and because it’s “the unexpected”, it will provide everyone in your home with the perfect prescription for the post-holiday, winter blues!!
Our 2012 Holiday Home Musical Video is ready to provide you with some inspirational holiday spirit!Â
Click below, to view:
If you’d like to watch it in HIGH DEFINITION QUALITY, click on the “GEAR” icon (this will appear in the black bar once you hit the PLAY button) and then, click on 720p.
Don’t forget to turn up your speakers, fix a cup of cocoa, put your feet up to…
Enjoy the Creativity!
MERRY CHRISTMAS
Eileen
♥ My sincerest thanks to the talented Production Staff at THEM FEELINGS MULTIMEDIA for creating our video each & every year, simply to support a small business! ♥
[As always, click on any photo to enjoy a larger view]
Christmas decorating at The Seasonal Home had to go in a slightly different direction for 2012, thanks to the addition of a new family member. Meet Miss Lilly Grace, who sometimes looks more like a Teddy Bear…
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She’s a very sweet girl who didn’t mind posing for her holiday photo…
And just this week, those cute little puppy ears turned upward (to help her listen for Santa!) and I think she looks more like a fox…
Whatever our little girl turns out to be, because she can get into things (as most puppies do), I had to out-fox her by creating some clever holiday decor. So, if you have a new, young one around this Christmas, whether on 2 or 4 legs, I hope my ideas help you out too! Also in this blog post, you’ll find unique & budget-friendly decorating ideas as well as DIY tutorials, so make yourself a cup of cocoa and enjoy the creativity!
THE FRONT PORCH
Because I created such a large display last year (click HERE to review), I chose to keep things simple outside, utilizing my trusty footed urns (you’ve seen these before! lol) again to hold natural, preserved wreaths, with a large red ornament in the middle of each. The berry garland is actually 3 separate (4-foot) pieces. HELPFUL HINT:attaching several smaller (less expensive) lengths together is easier than trying to find one, (expensive) long berry garland:
I found myself in a “Holly and Berries” mood, this year and it began with my outdoor bench. HELPFUL HINTS: Don’t hesitate to decorate outdoor furniture with garland (adding lights too!) because it welcomes your guests with the “unexpected”. And the mossy gift (on the bench seat) is simply a white box that I covered in moss, using glue… easy!
I love my Goat Cart! And it turned out to be a great investment because it holds larger decorations, for every season! Also, I’ve used it in my garden, yard and now, on my front porch. How versatile is that?!! 🙂
The final front porch touch is an old sled I display every year (found years ago, at a local yard sale… in FLORIDA, no less! lol). I usually add a “PLEASE SNOW” sign to it, but I think I’ve finally given up on that dream and added holly, berries and a skate to it instead. In Florida, we CAN do ice! 😉
THE FOYER
The Holly and Berries snuck right in the front door and laid out beautifully in the Foyer also…. welcoming Christmas, with a little help from Santa, of course!
And here’s where the “clever” part comes in, for the first time. Anyone who’s been a fan of The Seasonal Home for a while is probably familiar with the 2-tiered table that is usually in the foyer. Knowing that a puppy (or child) could easily AND quickly clear off a shelf of easy-to-reach decorations, my idea was to temporarily shuffle some of my accent tables to new locations (in the home) for the season. Check out how nicely a cabinet from the kitchen also fits under the mirror in the foyer!
THE LIVING ROOM
The Living Room is where the first tree went in The Seasonal Home. I knew any tree I displayed would need to be elevated (out-of-the-way) to keep our little pup safe, so the unique & inexpensive idea I came up with is a Drum Stand tree base! The total cost to make this was around $20 and here’s the DIY instructions:
CLICK on photo to better view the instruction details
I chose a color theme of black & gold along with frosty and musical (under the stars) accents. If you look closely (at the tree below), you’ll see that I recycled the black branches from Halloween 2012, adding them into the tree for texture. I also reused 2 silver drums from Christmas 2010 by cutting & adding a length of the black & gold reindeer gift wrap (used on the drum tree stand) and gold cord (to hide the gift wrap edge) so they coordinate, when added to the tree.
It’s so hard to find large, quality glass ornaments in black! Check out Seasons on the Web link (right hand column of this blog) to check out their huge ornament inventory!
And here’s the rest of the room!
HELPFUL HINT: boxes, gift wrapped in coordinating paper & ribbon make an inexpensive room accent for the holidays!
THE FAMILY ROOM
In the Family Room, I couldn’t place too many decorations or snow on The Seasonal Home hearth because of our new pup and her thieving ways. And because she thinks she can carry away just about ANYTHING in her tiny mouth, I had to be sure I used something too large for her to consider… these lighted, faux gifts appear to be just perfect… so far!  (lol)
And here’s the rest of the Family Room
I’m starting to notice a “puppy” theme in this room (LOL)
And I simply can’t let a Christmas go by without highlighting a series of my ornaments, like these (Hallmark Windows Series) that feature children peeking into shop windows at Christmas time. A cabinet or sideboard (with shelves) is the perfect place to display a collection. HELPFUL HINT: If you also have a collection of ornaments, consider trying something new by displaying them together (for maximum impact) instead of spreading them around the tree… it’s incredibly fun!
Here’s some close-ups so you can see how much fun adding small details (like snow & trees) can create!
THE KITCHEN
Another Christmas tree to be elevated! And, of course, it should also make sense with the theme I chose – Snowmen and Holiday Sweets to create the Frosty Sweet Shop!
I was inspired by a $500 Cupcake (themed) tree stand I saw at my holiday wholesaler. Although it was beautiful, the cost to make mine was only $10.
Here’s the directions:
Once you place the Cupcake liner around your basket, it’s time to add frosting. Lightly spray-paint polyester fiber fill (comes in a plastic bag at craft & discount box stores) and shape like frosting dripping over the edge of the Cupcake liner. I used a light pink color of spray paint. Finally, add small (matte or glitter-finish) ornaments to the fiber fill to create a look of candy sprinkles on the frosting. I found a pick of several glittered ornaments at Target for only $2.00 and because each one was already on a piece of wire, it was easy to slip them into the fiber fill batting, individually.
And here’s the finished look –
The rest of the room –
HELPFUL HINT: Large foam snowflakes (Dollar Tree) make great winter-theme placemats!
HELPFUL HINT: the 6″ plastic snowflakes I found at the Dollar Tree this year fit perfectly into the chandelier to create instant ice-bling!
Light and motion collectible house by Department 56
KIRKLAND’S has wonderful holiday art… this one lights up!
HELPFUL HINT: Use holiday cards to help you decorate inexpensively! I used 3 inside the openings of this photo display & coordinated a little scene below them.
You’ll find even more details and decorations in this year’s HOLIDAY TOUR on YouTube… here’s the link:
Ok, I know it sounds a little strange, but I LOVE to think about Christmas in July. Especially this weekend… July 25th… 5 months from Christmas day and only 4 months from the weekend when most people begin to decorate for the holidays. And it’s been soooooo hot outside that a little Christmas spirit just seems to be the perfect way to cool things down (in my mind).
Because I am a holiday designer, this is the time of year I begin to look at new trends and some old favorites too. I am also very busy working on an instructional video series, in which I will be sharing all of my experience (and Secrets!!) in holiday design. When it’s ready, it will be available on my blog. I think you will be very surprised over its reasonable cost and jam-packed content.
Although I decorate many homes for the holidays, through my company, decorating my own is my fav and where my creativity really shines. Here’s a musical video from last year’s design, complimented by 2 wonderful holiday songs… 1 classic & 1 contemporary. So, turn down the air conditioning, pour a mug of hot cocoa and enjoy a few minutes of virtual Christmas (in July!):
P.S. If you want ideas for making holiday memories… to go ALONG with your creative decorating this Christmas… check out my book – it’s full of them!
Living Room Tree ~ My tribute to our fragile environment
In the evening… this tree was magical!
Tree Base Closeup
Living Room Garland ~ SNOWY Theme
Garland Closeup
Snowy Living Room Wreath ~ FAMILY Photo Theme
Wreath ~ Daylight View
Garland Closeup
Table Decoration
Kitchen Tree ~ SANTA Theme ~ Check out the tree base to see Santa’s boots!
Kitchen ~ Wall Decor
Shelf Vignette – COFFEE Theme
Family Room Fireplace ~ GINGERBREAD Theme
Fireplace Closeup ~ GINGERBREAD Theme Wreath
Garland Closeup ~ “MERRY CHRISTMAS” spelled out in Christmas Cookie Ornaments
Family Room Tree ~ GINGERBREAD COOKIE Theme
Tree Top Closeup
Tree Closeup
Try this trick when decorating – hang a smaller snowflake in front of a larger snowflake, making sure they are different colors. I used a red in front of a clear snowflake in this design.
It’s all about the GINGERBREAD!
Family Room (Built-in) Cabinet ~ GINGERBREAD / COOKIE Theme
And if you are enjoying my holiday design style and would like to know more of my “Pro” Christmas Decorating Secrets, check out my BRAND NEW DVD! Available for sale 11/15… see the promo in the right hand column of this blog. If you want a little sample of just a FEW things you will learn, here’s the ad for the DVD:
For more creative ideas, check out the ABOUT THE AUTHOR page!
Welcome to… the ART of decorating around the JOY of celebrating!™
Also… I’d love to hear from you!
Feel free to email me with any question, comment, suggestion you may have or with your request to have one of your ideas spotlighted - info@creativefamilytraditions.com
If you show off our creativity, please let them know you found it @ www.TheSeasonalHome.com -
so they can visit us to enjoy even MORE of our creativity! :-)
Click here to watch my FREE VIDEOS and enjoy some musical, holiday spirit:
STEP ONE – look for a metal, snowflake-shaped cookie cutter. I just found a 4-pack at Wal-Mart for $2.88 that’s probably on sale now (woo-hoo!). The reason you need a metal cutter is so it can withstand the heat of your frying pan or griddle.
The Seasonal Home 